Tonight
by Yugao
Summary: She managed to make him smile, if only for tonight. AnkoZabuza for AyanaPL


_**Tonight**_

_**Yugao**_

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_**Summary: **_She managed to make him smile, if only for tonight.

_**Author's Note: **_ZabuzaAnko request fic for AyanaPL. It was hard to write since I've written neither of them before, and they both get such little screentime… so yes. This turned out badly, I think. Random and without much point to it. I'm sorry, Ayana, and I will try to make another to make up for all of this crap, haha. This was titled for FM Static's _Tonight, _which I was listening to while writing this.

_**Disclaimer: **_I don't own anything.

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To begin at the end, it was under the cover of three-in-the-morning darkness that I left the tavern, a different man from the one who had entered it. The broadsword was heavy on my back though I had hardly felt that way before. I was tired, that was all, and I knew it; I had not gotten much sleep the night before. Maybe an hour or a bit less than that, sure, but if I stayed any longer I risked being recognized as Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist, and without drunkenness the tavern regulars may very well decide to take my head and the bounty that comes with it.

I still had too much to do to die now, though.

"You look exhausted, Zabuza-sama."

I had grown accustomed to my ward's sudden appearances when I least expected them, and I turned towards the source of the voice as I had done several times before. The frail, almost feminine young man before me smiled sadly, as if he were mourning my loss of sleep. I walked towards him as I replied, "That is because I _am _exhausted, Haku."

He smiled as he led the way, away from the inn and further into the forest, as he said, "Come, then. We'd better leave before daybreak arrives. Best that you forget all about whatever kept you up last night."

"I don't think that's going to be too easy," Zabuza answered as he followed his charge deeper into the forest, his thoughts on something else entirely.

What _had _happened last night?

I remembered the dim firelight, the dark corner I had taken to occupying to stay well enough out of sight. I was tired, tired enough to run the risk of being recognized if at least to stay at the inn for one night. Haku, on the other hand, had decided he had something else to do, but that he would be close by if ever he was needed. I assured him it wasn't necessary. I just wanted a drink or two, and a good night's sleep.

I downed what was meant to be my last cup of sake when I heard a yell from the other side of the room, and a crash soon after. I wasn't much for curiosity but I somehow found myself inching closer to try to see what had happened. A young woman stood at the bar, her face flushed with what seemed to him to be too much sake; she was pointing to the other side of the room, yelling, "And that's what you get for feeling me up, asshole!"

Said asshole was lying in a crumpled heap on the other side of the inn.

This scenario brought on different reactions from the crowd: some backed away from the woman, obviously knowing enough to keep well enough away from someone with questionable sanity and remarkable strength; and others, excited by the challenge she posed, tried to approach (they'll never learn, will they?). Before she could try another back-breaking move on them, though, I stepped in, surreptitiously sitting beside her at the bar and glaring at the men who dared come closer. The ones who were still sober probably recognized me; if the mask, hitai-ate, and broadsword weren't good enough giveaways as to my identity, I didn't know what was. The ones who were drunk probably didn't think she was worth fighting too much for.

"You didn't have to do that, you know! I could've handled them myself," she slurred, bringing another cup of sake to her lips.

I shrugged. "Yes, you could have. And then you would've gotten yourself kicked out for causing too much trouble," I told her nonchalantly. She was a kunoichi, presumably from Konoha, of at least Chuunin rank. Her clothes and manner gave away the first and third; the closeness of the tavern to the Village Hidden in the Leaves gave away the second. On any other instance she would have been my enemy, but like this, drunk and (not quite) helpless, she wouldn't be worth the fight at all.

"Wait, wait, I know you!" she said with a loud, raucous laugh and a hiccup, "You're Momo—mpfft!" I'd clapped my hand over her mouth to keep her from saying my name; it was obvious that the innkeeper had absolutely no idea as to who I was and I didn't want to risk his finding out. However, instead of keeping her quiet the gesture only served to irritate her further. She bit down, hard, on my hand, and I pulled it away – it was bleeding. I cursed to myself as she went back to drinking her sake.

"What is your _problem?_" I demanded. I was beyond annoyed now; I was furious. "I keep you from getting thrown out and you try to tell the innkeeper that I'm a wanted missing-nin!"

"And what's yours?" she demanded, copying my tone of voice. "I never asked for your help and you think I'm obligated to you just because you 'save' me!"

"You know who I am and yet you have no problem pissing me off?" I said, more as a question than as a statement, with a hard edge to my words. If she knew who I was then it was fairly certain that she knew I could tear her head off before she could even react. All five feet, six inches of her were in my face, and for some reason… it was entertaining.

She smiled brightly and answered, "I try not to judge people based on their reputations."

I could hardly stifle a laugh at that. I knew that she was only doing this because if I killed her I'd risk further recognition, which was obviously something I didn't want to happen. Maybe it was the sake emboldening her, I thought. Tomorrow her senses would be back and she would see me for what I was: a monster who deserved only death. But for the moment she was something of a friend, and that was enough, if only for tonight.

She was Mitarashi Anko, she said, a Special Jounin from Konoha; she was on her way back from a mission. This road was exceptionally dangerous at night, and it was a solo mission, so she decided to celebrate with a bottle (or four) of sake and a good night's sleep before heading back to the village. How she expected a good night's sleep after multiple cups of rice wine was beyond me, but it was obvious that this was a woman with spontaneity, who didn't plan things out carefully enough but was ready to face whatever consequences her rashness had.

When you were a missing-nin, you'd want to have a life like that.

I had to have plans. I'd have to chart every move I make, predict possible outcomes, and choose the best possible route. I have no Hokage to look up to or ask for instructions from; I answer to myself and no one else, and that alone makes life incredibly dangerous.

I was envious of the life she led, one without plans, one where a person lived in the present and got away with it.

"Momochi," she said bemusedly after her nth cup of sake, "That's a funny name. It sounds like it could be a rice cake or something." It was apparent that she was way past tipsiness by now; I knew that with another cup she'd collapse.

I smirked. "Big words for someone who's named after a dessert."

She grimaced and made to stand up, but she couldn't find her balance and tripped over her own feet. Before she could fall, though, I caught her. I sighed. She was in no condition to take care of herself that night, so I carried her on my back and headed towards the rooms. All the while I could hear her mumbling, "You didn't have to do that, you know, I could've handled it myself…" though it didn't sound as convincing as before.

"Yes, you could have," I answered softly, sympathetically, and it was so unlike me I was slightly unnerved. She pointed her room out to me and I took her there, laying her down on the futon and turning to leave.

"Zabuza?" it was the first time she said my name.

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." And with that I closed the door on her, on her brown eyes and dark hair, on her bright smile and sharp wit, on that night in general. It was a lapse in a dangerous time, a piece of happiness where it didn't belong.

And I was thankful for it.

"Zabuza-sama?"

Haku's voice took me back to the present, and I noticed that I had paused for a moment, staring back at the inn I had just left. He looked at me curiously, as if there was something I wasn't telling him. And although I had always told him everything and there never were any secrets between us, I knew that I couldn't tell him about this. About the strange woman who bit my hand and made me laugh, and made me feel, for the first time in my life, normal.

"It's nothing, Haku. Just… a memory."

_**Author's Note: **_I actually just wrote anything and everything that came into my mind, if that wasn't obvious. I'm so sorry this was so random, and I might do another one to make it up to you, AyanaPL. Please review. Criticism and comments are perfectly welcome.


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